CAIRO — Al-Shadhiliya Al-Uliya is a new Sufi order in Egypt that will be launched officially during the holy month of Ramadan (May-June), according to a source belonging to this new order, who spoke to Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity.
The Supreme Council of Sufi Orders in Egypt and the Ministry of Awqaf approved Feb. 21 the official registration of the new order and for it to be added to the 77 other Sufi orders that are officially recognized in Egypt. Sheikh Ali Gomaa, the former grand mufti of Egypt, is the originator of the new mystic order.
According to the regulations of Sufi orders, issued as per Law No. 118 (1976), the Supreme Council of Sufi Orders, which was founded in 1903, receives and approves applications for a new order, which also must be approved by the Ministry of Awqaf, Al-Azhar and the Ministry of Interior. The decision is then published in the Official Gazette. The new order should not be similar in practices or name to previous ones.
The council had also approved two orders on May 24, 2017: Radwaniya al-Khalutia and the Kurdish Naqshbandi. The Ministry of Awqaf has been relying on Sufism, which is often described as Islamic mysticism, to renew the religious discourse and to counter violence and extremism in Egypt. This is happening through the organization of joint seminars with Sufis and the Ministry of Awqaf during festivals celebrating the birthdays of "walis," or Sufi saints.
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